(1) Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to an improved apparatus and process for the pelletizing and related treatment of particles, and more specifically, to an improved method and apparatus for the pelletizing and related treatment of pharmaceutical or similar products in a fluid bed container.
(2) Description of Related Art
In certain known pelletizing processes of the prior art, a powdery substance is made doughy in a mixer, the doughy mass is shaped in an extruder, and the extruded mass is subsequently shaped into pellets, i.e., spherical pieces, in a drum or on a rotating pelletizer plate. The still moist pellets are then dried in a further step as, for example, in a fluid bed process.
Overall, pelletizing processes of this nature are comparatively cumbersome and require considerable equipment expenditures. A particular disadvantage is the necessary transfer from one treatment station to another (e.g., mixer to extruder to pelletizer plate).